Armenia opens the world's longest aerial tramway

Armenia's president has opened an aerial tramway that the country claims is the world's longest.

Armenia's president has opened an aerial tramway that the country claims is the world's longest.

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Officials say the tramway across the Vorotan River gorge in the country's south spans 5.7 kilometers (3.5 miles), longer than the 4.5 kilometer (2.8 mile) Sandia Peak Tramway in New Mexico, known as the world's longest passenger tramway.

The $45 million tramway links the highway from Armenia's capital of Yerevan with the 9th century Tatev Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage candidate and one of Armenia's oldest and most prominent monasteries.

Armenian authorities say they will apply to Guinness World Records to officially confirm that the tramway is the world's longest.